


Terrible Twos

by OnlyAugustine



Series: Play Dates; The Adventures of Little!Steve and Daddy!Sam [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Bunnies, Daddy!Sam, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play, Spaghetti, little!steve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-04
Updated: 2016-05-04
Packaged: 2018-06-06 08:49:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6747202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnlyAugustine/pseuds/OnlyAugustine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve deserves a break every once and a while.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Terrible Twos

Steve probably should've texted Sam _before_ he'd parked his motorcycle in the parking garage beneath Sam’s apartment building, but it's too late now. Because he isn't an actual resident and therefore doesn't have an actual parking sticker, he should've parked on the street, but that seemed too out of the way and one of the perks of being Captain America is getting out of tickets. He pulls out his phone, tightens the left strap of his backpack, and starts up the stairs.

_Hey,_ Steve texts. _I hope you're home._

He doesn't get an answer before he reaches Sam’s door, but when Sam answers his iPhone is clutched in his hand so Steve assumes he got the text. Sam’s eyebrows are raised and he's wearing a button down shirt and slacks, which makes Steve wince. Maybe he'd come at a bad time.

“Sorry, are you busy right now? I know I shoulda’ texted first but-”

Sam cuts him off with a smile and a shake of his head.

 “I just got off work and got sucked into some nature documentary on TV. Emperor Penguins are pretty interesting, it turns out. Come on in.”

Steve smiles and pecks Sam on the cheek as he scoots past him and into the flat. Sure enough, the TV in the living room is displaying a paused HD shot of penguins huddled close together in the Arctic.

 “Sorry about coming over unannounced,” Steve says, taking off his backpack and sitting on the couch “I had a real shitty day and wanted to see you.”

 “It's fine,” Sam calls from the kitchen, “I've gotten pretty used to superheroes showing up at my door without notice.”

He comes back to the couch with two open beers in his hand, and Steve takes the bottle held out to him.

“Why was your day so shitty?” Sam asks, taking a seat next to Steve and clicking the necks of their beer bottles together. Steve sighs and takes a long swig of his drink, pausing to savor the flavor before answering.

“We had that press conference yesterday explaining the -uh- Bucky situation, about him coming to live in the tower-” Steve starts, and Sam nods

“Yeah. I watched it. You did really well.” Sam says, and Steve nods.

“Thanks. Anyway, so while I was leaving, a reporter asked me some bullshit question about whether my _stance on the Winter Soldier’s innocence was due to an inherent bias_ and if _the decision to house him was compromising the safety of the public.”_

Sam nods again and asks, “and you replied with…”

Steve grimaces. “Well, I started with some words that he wasn't expecting to come from Captain America’s mouth. After that, I told him that Bucky was brainwashed and therefore, not responsible for the actions he took, and that I was friends with Bucky long before I was _Captain America_ and would stand with him even if it contradicts what the public _believes_ about him.

Sam grimaces sympathetically, and says “I'm surprised the headlines haven't come out already. ‘ _America’s Sweetheart: Hydra sympathizer and commie traitor”_

“Apparently the article was stopped due to a lot of bribing and threats from our PR team. I get a call this morning from Marlene, that's the PR director, asking if she could _have a word with me_ . She made this whole long speech about how I don't _“own my own image”_ and can't _“express a controversial opinion because it violates contract agreements.”_ It's ridiculous! The whole idea that I can't say anything that I believe because the people who _own Captain America_ might disagree! But if some company wants to use my face on a poster supporting some that I don’t believe in, it doesn’t matter! And now they’re dragging Bucky through the mud and expecting me to do nothing about it? I just wish I could check all of this shit at the door, ya know?”

Sam reaches out a hand and rubs Steve shoulder.

“Maybe you can relax a little bit tonight. Is that why you brought the backpack?” Sam asks, gesturing to the bag between Steve's knees. Steve looks away guiltily.

“It's not- I just thought that maybe, if you wanted to. I didn't bring that much stuff.”

“What did you bring?”

Steve shrugs again. “Just the white blanket and Bu- er, the bunny.” Steve blushes when he stumbles over the name of his rabbit. It makes Sam smile. Bun is Stevie's favorite. Sam stands and offers a hand to Steve, who takes it and rises from the couch.

“How about,” Sam says as he leans down to pick up Steve’s backpack for him. “You and Bun go have a little nap, get into your headspace, then we can have some dinner, alright? Maybe watch a movie or something after.”

Steve looks yearningly at Sam, then sighs.

“I don’t know, Sam. Maybe not tonight. I showed up here outta the blue, and I don’t wanna cause-”

“I don't want to hear one word about you causing me any trouble. Steve, it doesn’t bother me at all. In fact, I enjoy it too! I haven’t seen my Stevie in a long time, and I miss the little guy.” Sam pushes the backpack into Steve’s arms and smiles at him. “You deserve a break every once and awhile.”

Steve smiles a little ruefully, then asks, “Can I finish my beer first?” And holds the bottle up in his hand. Sam laughs and takes it from him.

“I’ll put it in a sippy cup for you.”

That makes Steve laugh a little too. He leans forward and plants a kiss on Sam’s lips, before turning down the hall towards Sam’s bedroom. Once there, he closes the door behind him, and rests against it for a little while, just feeling himself breath. He's tired. More tired than he'd realized, and is thankful for Sam being so understanding. Slowly, Steve stands upright again, and tugs the button on his pants loose with one hand, his backpack grasped in the other. He wiggles them down his hips, then tugs then free of his ankles. He briefly considers taking off his shirt too, but decides against it. It’s spring time now, but the late afternoon chill won't lift until closer to summer.

Sam’s room is neat, as usual. Steve’s never seen the place a mess, and he feels bad just leaving his balled up jeans on the floor, but doesn’t want to put them anywhere else.

Steve moves over to the bed and sets the backpack down, then gently tugs the zipper. Bun is resting inside with his rolled blankie nestled underneath. Steve pulls Bun out first and holds him in the cradle of his arm while he pulls out his blankie and unfolds it. It's rather small, not big enough to cover even half of steve’s towering frame, but it's soft and white, with blue moons and yellow stars printed on the plush. It always makes him feel very little. Steve shifts Bun from the crook of his arm to rest under his chin and rubs his cheek against Bun’s soft tan fur. He allows himself a small smile. With his free hand, Steve grabs his blankie by the corner, careful not to fold the fabric too tightly in his palm.

Gently, he crawls onto the bed and knee-walks toward the pillows, pulling Sam’s covers back and slipping underneath them. He sets bun down next to him, and uses both hands, his movements less coordinated now, to maneuver his blankie under the comforter with him. Satisfied, Steve picks up Bun once again and cradles him to his chest.

Sam’s bed is firm the way Steve likes. When beds are too soft it tends to remind him of how heavy he is, but Sam’s bed supports his weight well. The pillows and sheets smell like the soap Sam uses, and Steve turns to bury his face into the pillows, sniffing to pick up more of the scent. He has a brief grown-up thought about this being a little creepy, but lets it go. Little kids don’t have to worry about that kind of stuff. Steve pulls the comforter tighter around his shoulders, brings his knees up around himself, deepens his breathing, and soon he’s asleep.

 

His dream isn’t deep, and he can feel the vague lightness of consciousness resting just above him like he’s floating in shallow water. It makes his dream feel a little dizzy and distorted, like it flickers in and out of being. Bucky’s there for a while. So is sam, and Natasha and Tony and maybe his mom too. Then things change. Rumlow is there, and so is Pierce. Now when Bucky appears he's wearing the mask again. Steve can feel himself slipping deeper into sleep when-

“Stevie?” Sam’s voice calls him. Steve opens his eyes groggily and grumbles into Bun’s fur, pulling his knees up tighter. Sam is sitting next to him on the edge of the bed, smiling and speaking softly at him.

“Stevie, can you wake up now? You were sounding like you were having a bad dream.”

He was having a bad dream, and should be grateful that Sam woke him up, but Steve can’t help it. He’s feeling awfully little at that moment, and a little frustrated too, so he turns his head away from Sam and mumbles out an indignant “No!”

“No?” Sam asks, and strokes a hand over Steve’s hair. “No, you can’t wake up?”

Steve harrumphs and says it again.

“No!”

“Do you want to go back to sleep?” Sam asks, but Steve’s answer is the same.

“No.”

That makes Sam chuckle. He leans down and tugs at the comforter a little, exposing more of Steve’s face. Steve’s nose scrunches up and he whines, turning his face further into the pillow.

“What’s this, the terrible two’s? Why’s my baby so grumpy today?”

“No!”

“Good answer.” Sam says, mostly to himself. Stevie isn't always the same age, but typically hovers at around four or five. Sometimes, though, he’s younger. Sam doesn't mind, but he knows that the drop in age is usually in response to emotional stress, which worries him. The problem Steve is having probably goes beyond having a bad day at work.

“Am I gonna hear anything other than no today?”

“No!”

Sam sighs, resigned.

“Are you upset with me?” Sam asks, not thinking that's the case, but checking anyway. Steve pauses, but shakes his after a second. He doesn’t know why he’s feeling so bratty, maybe it's because he's tired or stressed out, or maybe he just wants to be bratty today, but Sam is patient and kind, so Steve feels okay letting this side of himself show too.

“Hey, there we go! Great communicating, kiddo. We’re making progress. What can I do to make you feel better?”

Steve grumbles and shakes his head again.

“Okay, what does the headshake mean? There’s nothing I can do, or you don’t know what I can do?”

That makes Steve sigh even more. He turns his head so his face isn't muffled by the pillows and lets out a long “Noo!”

Sam sighs and says “Alright. Lets try this again. What do you want, baby?”

Sam’s hand is back in Steve’s hair, and Steve lets out a breath he didn’t know he was keeping in. Gently, as to not tangle up the blankets, Stevie rolls over so his face is level with sam’s leg where it’s resting on the bed. He scoots forward a little more so he can press his forward against sam’s thigh and let out a little grunt. Sam goes back to petting him.

“Want Sam” is all Stevie says.

“I’m here, kiddo. Do you just want to cuddle?” Sam asks, and gets a fast nod in return.

“Oh, okay. See, we could’ve gotten there a little faster if you’d used your big boy words.”

Steve harrumphs again. “Not big.” Steve says by way of an explanation, Sam sighs.

“You’re right, little man. That's not fair of me. You can be a little as you want, Stevie.”

Sam shifts so he's seated fully on the bed and Steve shuffles forward so he's nestled up to Sam’s side. Stevie looks up at him shyly and when Sam smiles at him, he gives a happy hum and buries his face against Sam's chest.  

“Awe,” Sam says with a little laugh, “there's my happy baby!” and gives Steve a loud kiss on the top of his head. Steve laughs and wraps his arms around Sam's waist in a hug before letting go. Steve grabs Bun with two clumsy hands and holds him up to Sam.

“Now Bun!” Steve says, giving Bun a little shake. Sam takes Bun between his own hands and kisses the toy’s head as well. Stevie smiles and giggles and reaches his hand out to take Bun back. Sam hands him over and ruffles Steve's hair.

“Hey, how about we make some dinner. Are you hungry?”

Steve considers this, then nods. Sam taps a hand on his shoulder and Steve rises, stretching and scooting back so he's sitting up fully, kicking the blankets off his legs and feet. Sam stands and offers his hand to Steve, who takes it and stands on clumsy legs. They walk together to the kitchen, where Sam leads Steve to a stool at the counter. Sam doesn't think he would usually let a two year old sit that high up all by themselves, but Stevie is holding on to the counter with his free hand, so he probably won't fall. Sam keeps an eye on him anyway.

“Okay!” Sam says, opening the fridge and peaking inside. “I have milk, eggs, hmm...oh, hey, Spaghetti sauce! How does spaghetti sound?”

Stevie smiles and nods, giving Sam a thumbs up around Bun.

“Alright! Spaghetti it is. Can you stay right here at the counter while I cook? I can bring you some things if you want to color.”

“Yes!” Steve says, and Sam nods, walking from the kitchen into the living room and over to his desk. He has paper in a stack by the printer, and crayons, colored pencils and markers in the big drawer below it. He grabs a stack of four or five papers and and opens the drawer, but pauses. There was a little thought that has to be put into which to bring. Stevie likes colored pencils and markers, but the pencils are better suited for older kids and the markers might make a mess when he's so little, so crayons seemed to be a good choice. On the other hand, Stevie was strong and had a tendency to break crayons when he's less in control of himself, which always makes him upset. Sam thinks, not for the first time, that there should be a store where he could buy children’s toys designed for super soldiers. Maybe he could start an etsy shop. Sam finally decides on the crayons, and bring them over.

When Sam returns Stevie is petting Bun softly over his floppy ears and holding his paw in the other delicate grasp. Seeing Steve so sweet and soft like this makes Sam's heart ache and he wishes that Steve could have a life where he didn't have to hide this gentle and open side of himself. Not that he doesn't love the time he spends with his Stevie, because he does! But he knows that having to hold it inside hurts Steve sometimes. Sam sets the paper and crayons down and gives Steve a big kiss on the forehead.

“Tell me if you want markers instead, okay?” Sam says, and Steve shakes his head. Satisfied, Sam sets his mind on cooking dinner. He goes to the pantry and scrounges up an unopened bag of spaghetti to go with the sauce. He gets out a big pot to fill with water and places it on the stove. Making spaghetti is pretty easy, and Sam relaxes into the rhythm of stirring the slowly warming sauce, checking the water, and glancing back to make sure his baby is still coloring happily. It's a couple minutes before the water starts to boil and Sam can add the noodles, and Sam spends it mostly in content silence.

Stevie is concentrating furiously on his drawing, the tip of his pink tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth. Sam is a few steps away from him, but he can make out a bright yellow sun, a tree, and some geometric shapes from the angle he's looking at. Stevie notices him staring and brings an arm up to over his work.

“No.” Steve says, and Sam sighs, but smiles and obliges him, turning back around to the pasta. It's only got about a minute left, and the sauce is warm. Sam dips his pinky into the marinara and tastes it. After a smack of his lips and some brief consideration, he picks up an adjacent salt shaker and sprinkles some into the pot. He gives both the pasta and the sauce one last stir and turns off the burner.   

“Okay, kiddo. It's ready.” Sam calls over his shoulder. Steve doesn't say anything, but Sam can hear the rustling of paper behind him and assumes that Stevie is cleaning up. Sam grabs one heavy white plate from the cabinet above the sink, and equally big, but light green and plastic plate from the shelf above it. He spoons a large helping of spaghetti onto Stevie's plate and pours the sauce over it. He walks Stevie's plate over to the table first, and sets it down before turning to collect Stevie himself.

The kid is still at the counter, carefully trying to stuff the crayons back into the box. Stevie's drawing is flipped over and the rest of the papers are all in a messy stack. Sam walks up behind him, taking care to make his footsteps a little heavier, and places a hand over Steve's shoulder.

“Hey want some help with that, kiddo?” Sam asks, holding out a hand to take the box of crayons. Stevie shakes his head and says “No! I fix it.”

Sam nods and takes his hand back then leans in to kiss Stevie's cheek.

“Okay. I'm proud of you for cleaning up all by yourself, kiddo.”

That makes Steve preen. He gives Sam a big smile and holds out a hand to allow Sam to help him off the stool. Stevie's feet are only held off the ground by keeping them hooked behind the bar that stretches between the legs of the stool, and he stumbles a little when he unhooked them, but he steps down and allows Sam to lead him toward the table.

Stevie sits down at his usual spot at the table, and Sam helps him push in his chair.

“Do you want some juice, baby?” Sam asks, and Steve nods. He's quiet today, but he's very little and Sam thinks he's still tired too. He goes back to the kitchen and pulls out a sippy cup, bright green with little planets and rocket ships, and fills it with grape juice. While in the kitchen, he fills his own plate with pasta and brings both the plate and the cup over.

Steve has Bun settled on his lap and he's using his fork to lift noodles shakily toward his mouth. Sam watches wearily as the forkful of spaghetti circles precariously over Bun’s head, and before the sauce can splatter, he reaches out and picks Bun off Steve's lap. Stevie closes his mouth around the fork, but gives Sam a pouty look at the same time. When he swallows, Steve reaches out a hand toward the bunny in Sam's grip.

“Give Bun!” He whines, and Sam sighs.

“Kiddo, if you keep him on your lap, he's gonna get dirty. How about we put him on the chair next to you?”

Steve’s pout deepens, and Sam moves so he can place Bun in the empty chair to Steve's left.

“He's gonna be right here, baby. You can play with him some more when you're done.” Sam explains, giving Bun a pat on the head for good measure. Steve doesn't give any verbal affirmations, just gives Bun a yearning look and picks up his juice. That's good enough for Sam. He knows that Stevie would be far more upset if Bun had gotten dirty and needed to be washed. Sam had found out the hard way that the minds of toddlers equated the washing machine with stuffed animal murder.

Stevie is always quiet when he's this little, so Sam keeps up most of the conversation. Asking Stevie simple questions and answering the ones he has in return. They aren't ever more than one or two words, usually “but why?” Or “what's that?”, which Sam answers enthusiastically and to the best of his ability. He loves talking to little Steve, with his questions so innocent and his voice so high and soft. It makes Sam feel soft and gentle too.

Steve likes to feed himself usually, and tends to refuse a bib. Sam doesn't really try to fight him on that, but it means that Sam has to help him wash up after dinner. He leads Stevie down the hall towards the bathroom, and has him lean against the counter not facing the mirror. Steve's had the problem before where seeing his appearance can snap him out of little space, which is a very stressful way for him to come up. Instead, Sam grabs a washcloth from under the sink and gets it wet so he can wipe down Stevie's face himself.

The kid squirms when Sam dabs at the sauce on his cheek, and squeaks out a sharp

“Cold!”

“I'm sorry, baby.” Sam says, drawing the cloth back. “Is it too cold?” He asks, prepared to run the cloth under warmer water, but Stevie shakes his head, so Sam resumes his cleaning. When he's done, Sam bestows a loud and exaggerated kiss on Steve's cheek, and Stevie giggles in delight.

“Now that we’re all clean, why don't we watch a movie, huh?” Sam asks, taking Steve's hand and standing him up from the counter. Steve smiles big and says

“Want watch Up!”

That makes Sam laugh.

“Kiddo we've watched Up four times already! You don't want to see something else?” Sam tries to reason, but it's to no avail.

“No!” Steve says. “Up!”

Sam sighs, but agrees, and leads Steve out of the bathroom. They stop by Sam's bedroom before heading toward the living room to pick up a pacifier for Steve. When he gets tired or distracted, Stevie has a tendency to suck on his thumb, which Sam read is bad for babies’ teeth, so now he makes sure to always have a few pacifiers handy. Sam does have to watch Steve with the pacifiers, though. It had happened more than once that Steve had been teething on a pacifier adm accidentally bitten right through the rubber nub. Usually, though, Steve is careful with his strength.

When in the living room, Sam makes sure Steve is curled comfortably on the couch before inserting the DVD. After the first time seeing it, Steve insists that Sam fast forward through the sad part at the beginning, which Sam is fine with because if he's being honest, it always makes him tear up a little bit too.

With the movie ready to watch, Sam walks back over to the couch and settles in. Stevie moves immediately closer to him, leaning down and snuggling up to Sam's side for comfort. Sam tugs a blanket down from the other side of the couch and drapes it over Stevie, who lets out a little happy sigh. With his baby comfortable and content at his side, Sam presses play.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is a result of not enough Little!Steve and as far as I could find, no Daddy!Sam. Sometimes we have to write the fics we want to read. I have lots more ideas for this universe so stay tuned for more installments of this series!
> 
> Thanks for reading! Don't forget to leave comments and kudos :)


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